Make Room For Carlos Alvarez, Most Important UConn Athlete

It's All About The Soccer Star Right Now

STORRS — — The goal had the coach reminiscing about 2000. A jacket had the player reminiscing about 1994.

But let's look forward for a moment. Let's talk about the next month. Let's talk about December 2011.

Over the next 30 days, Carlos Alvarez is the most important athlete on the UConn campus.

Oh, we can hear the haters now.

How can you say he's more important than Jeremy Lamb, Shabazz Napier or Andre Drummond?

How can you say he's more important than Bria Hartley, Stefanie Dolson or Kaleena Mosqueda-Lewis?

How can you say he's more important than Lyle McCombs, Kendall Reyes, Sio Moore or Dave Teggart?

For that matter, how can you say he's more important that Mamadou Doudou Diouf or goalie Andre Blake?

I guess you could argue if Teggart nails a 52-yard field goal to beat Cincinnati next Saturday for the extra bowl loot, that would make him a very important man to the athletic department war chest. But national championships trump all and the lifeblood of the 2011 UConn soccer team runs through the little feet of its junior midfielder.

Alvarez was the best player at Morrone Stadium in UConn's opening NCAA tournament game against Monmouth. He was the best player again Sunday at Morrone Stadium in UConn's 3-0 victory over James Madison that pushed the Huskies into NCAA quarterfinals next weekend at home against UNC Charlotte.

"Carlos has been great for us," coach Ray Reid said. "He's also a very humble guy. He knows we're 15-16 strong. If it's not one guy, it's another."

It was Alvarez at 18:27 after Tony Cascio found him with a through ball on the right side. Alvarez immediately found the far corner of the net for his sixth goal of the season to make it 1-0. That would become the game-winner.

"I just made a run," Alvarez said. "Tony played a great ball. I saw the keeper coming. I just tried to do what I do best. Bury the ball."

He buried it all right. He buried it in Reid's memory bank, had his coach getting déjà vu from the Huskies' national championship season.

"Yeah, 2000, Elite Eight, Brent Rahim, same goal, [Cesar Cuellar] sent him in, same corner, put us in the Final Four," Reid said.

Rahim's goal beat Brown 1-0, put the Huskies in the Final Four and they haven't been back since. Maybe that changes in the coming days.

"I struck the ball the best I ever have," Rahim said that day 11 years ago.

"I'm going to show Carlos the goal [on film today]" Reid said.

And then he smiled.

"Rahim didn't defend like Carlos," Reid said.

Before the postgame press conference, Alvarez spotted former Courant sports writer Jerry Trecker, one of the most knowledgeable soccer men anywhere, wearing a 1994 World Cup jacket.

"I went to one of the games," Alvarez said. "Escobar's own goal …"

Say no more, Carlos. Andres Escobar of Colombia deflected the ball into his own net, the U.S. won, 2-1, and well, Escobar was shot and killed in Medellin upon his return.

"My dad took me to the Rose Bowl that day," Alvarez said. "I was 4. My dad is my idol. He played with Chivas Guadalajara. He showed me the footsteps. My older brother played for a couple of years and I have four younger ones. So I'm trying to set an example, something they could look up to."

Alvarez was completing four years at Bishop Mora Salesian High in Los Angeles when UConn came calling.

"I knew a couple of guys that were here, Cruz Hernandez and Oscar Castillo, guys who were successful from where I'm from," Alvarez said. "I knew them from Sunday leagues, Saturday leagues. They were my friends. I said one day I want to be like them. They're becoming something in life."

Alvarez visited Storrs. He liked the school. He liked the coaching staff. He felt solid here.

"Really tough, to be honest with you," Alvarez said. "There are six gangs around my house. It's really bad. At the end of the day, if you don't have love, you end up there. My parents, my family, coaches, teachers, they gave me love and always helped me. They never let me to go to the bad things. They kept me focused and working hard."

There is an unmistakable earnestness to Alvarez. Before this season, the Huskies had never won a tournament game while he was here. He wanted to change that. During the preseason, he talked about unfinished business. And then guys like him and Diouf went about the business of finishing, while the defense went about posting a school record 16 shutouts.

"We know what it takes to win," Alvarez said. "Our chemistry is so strong. Everyone likes each other. No one hates anyone. Whenever we go somewhere, everyone invites everyone. We bond together.

"That's the beauty of it. On the field and off the field, we're brothers."